Letter: In Brief

Sir: Jeremy Laurance is only partly right ("Danger! Phobia alert", 2 September) when he points the finger at the Royal Free scientists for going beyond the bounds of their science in whipping up scares about the MMR vaccine. He might also direct his digit at two other groups: those who fund science, whose niggardly penny-pinching tempts good scientists into poor attempts at spin-doctoring; and science writers who connive with the researchers to turn science into scares.

PHILIP PETTIFOR

London SW6